Gotham Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in Gen Digital Inc. $GEN

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management increased its Gen Digital stake by 35.4% in the fourth quarter, buying 531,174 more shares and bringing its total holding to 2,031,771 shares worth about $55.2 million.
• Insider trading was mixed: Director John C. Chrystal bought 3,000 shares, while Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares, and insiders currently own 9.30% of the company.
• Gen Digital beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, reporting $0.67 EPS on revenue of $1.28 billion, while also paying a quarterly dividend that annualizes to $0.50 per share for a 2.1% yield.

Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN - Free Report) by 35.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,031,771 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 531,174 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.34% of Gen Digital worth $55,244,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 38,275.3% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 194,563 shares of the company's stock worth $5,078,000 after purchasing an additional 194,056 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,213,797 shares of the company's stock worth $2,050,150,000 after purchasing an additional 964,046 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Gen Digital in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,238,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,155,639 shares of the company's stock worth $30,128,000 after buying an additional 102,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LBP AM SA boosted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 63.7% in the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 738,272 shares of the company's stock worth $20,074,000 after buying an additional 287,369 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John C. Chrystal bought 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.06 per share, with a total value of $81,180.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 31,419 shares of the company's stock, valued at $850,198.14. This trade represents a 10.56% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.78, for a total transaction of $2,478,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,832,724 shares of the company's stock, valued at $94,974,900.72. The trade was a 2.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 9.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GEN shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Gen Digital from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Gen Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Gen Digital in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Argus upgraded shares of Gen Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Gen Digital from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gen Digital has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.29.

Gen Digital Price Performance

Gen Digital stock opened at $23.92 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $22.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.54. Gen Digital Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.78 and a 52 week high of $32.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.41 billion, a PE ratio of 15.14 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Gen Digital had a net margin of 19.46% and a return on equity of 55.47%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. Gen Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.680-0.700 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.850-2.950 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Gen Digital Inc. will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gen Digital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Gen Digital's payout ratio is presently 31.65%.

About Gen Digital

Gen Digital NASDAQ: GEN is a global cybersecurity company specializing in consumer- and small-business-focused security, privacy, and identity protection solutions. The company offers a suite of products designed to safeguard devices, networks, and personal information against malware, ransomware, phishing attacks and other digital threats. With a focus on user-friendly interfaces and cross-platform compatibility, Gen Digital develops antivirus software, VPN services, parental controls, password management tools, and comprehensive identity-theft monitoring services.

Gen Digital traces its origins to the consumer software division of Symantec Corporation, which was spun off in late 2019 under the NortonLifeLock name.

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